Shear mechanism.



PATENTED SEPT. 4:, 1906. H. AIKEN.

SHEAR MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 5 190x.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

No. 830,276. PATENTED SEPT. 4, 1906. H. AIKEN.

SHEAR MECHANISM.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.5,1902. V

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PATENTED SEPT. 4, 1906.

H. AIKEN.

SHEAR MEGHA NISM.

APPLICATION FILED 83141.5. 1902.

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ENTOR HENRY AIKEN, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

SHEAR MECHANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 4, 1906.

Application filed September 5, 1902. Serial No. 122,190.

To ztZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY AIKEN, of Pittsburg, Allegheny county,Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful Shear Mechanism, of which thefollowing is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, inwhich Figure 1 shows in plan view shears constructed in accordance withmy invention. Fig. 2 is a front elevation thereof, partly in verticalsection. Fig. 3 is a vertical section of the shears on the line 111 IIIof Fig. 2, but on a larger scale. Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view of thefluid connections, and Fig. 5 is a detail view of the valve 18 with thevalve shown in its open position.

In the drawings, 2 represents the intensifier actuated by asteam-cylinder 2 controlled by a valve 2. The intensifier supplies waterunder pressure through a pipe 3 to the cylinders of the shears; but notbeing part of this invention I will not describe it in detail.

4 is a return-water tank which receives the return or waste water fromthe cylinders 10 and 11 and is elevated so as to afford a constant backpressure in its pipe 1 to counterbalance the plunger 12, so as to holdit at all times in contact with the head 14.

5 is the upper head of the shears, having a shear-knife 6 and connectedby rods 7 with a cross-head 8, which is supported by the plunger 9 of ahydraulic adjusting-cylinder 10. The head 5, cross-head 8, and rods 7constitute the frame of the shears, which is longitudinally adjustablefor the purpose of varying the gap between the shear-blades, asexplained below.

1 1 is the main cylinder of the shears. It is open at both ends and hastwo oppositelydirected plungers 12 13, the plunger 13 being supported bythe cross-head 8 and the upper plunger 12 bearing upon the lower head 14of the shears, which has a shear-knife 15 and is normally at about thelevel of a feed-table 16.

17 17 are retracting-cylinders whose p1ungers are connected with thelower head 14, These cylinders are under constant pressure of water frompipes 17 and assist in displacing the water from the main cylinder 11.The pipes 17 receive pressure through a pipe 2]. from an accumulator orsome other suitable source of supply, the pressure in said pipes beingsufficient to displace the water in the cylinder 11 when the plungers ofthe pullback cylinders 17 are actuated. The cylindistance.

der 10 has a water-supply pipe 10, controlled by a valve 18, which isconnected to the accumulator-pipe 17 by a branch pipe 17*. The valve 18is shown as having a port 18, which in one position of the valveconnects the pipes 4 and 10, and also a second port 18 which in anotherposition is arranged to connect the pipes 10' and 17 The hydraulic valve19 is a check-valve of any suitable type in the waste-pipe 1, which whenthe operating pressure is applied to the cylinder 11 automaticallycloses, so as to cut off connection of said cylinder with thereturn-water tank 4 and which when the actuating pres-' sure is shut offfrom the main cylinder 11 opens under the pressure from the tank 1 andconnects the tank 4 with the cylinder 11, and thus counterbalances theupper plunger 12 by pressure exerted between the plungers 12 13, theelevation of the tank being such that the fluid-pressure exerted on thepiston area will accomplish this result.

The shearing is done by moving the lower shear-head 14 upwardly and doesnot strain the feed-table 16, on which the piece to be sheared rests.The upper head 5 is adjustable vertically in order to vary the gapbetween the knives to suit the thickness of the piece to be sheared.Thus if the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 3 and it is desiredto shear a piece 20 of less thickness than the present gap between theblades the operator moves the valve 18 so as to place the cylinder 10 incommunication with the waste-pipe 4, whereupon the cross-head 8 and itsattached shear-head 5, with the bolts 7, constituting the shear-frame,descend the required The valve 18 is then moved to close the pipe 10 andto hold the upper head 5 in the position in which it has thus beenadjusted. The gap between the knives of the shears is thus reduced so asto be but little greater than the piece to be cut, and the leastpossible volume of water is therefore required in the main cylinder todo the work of shearing. To shear the piece fed between the knives, theintensifier 2 is connected with the cylinder 11 through the pipe 3, andthe pressure acting between the plungers 12 13 moves the plunger 12 andthe head 14 upwardly and shears the piece between the knives, the head 5being stationary, because. the plunger 9 rests upon the water confinedin the cylinder 10. After the piece has been sheared the valve 2 of theintensifier is reversed.

The valve 19 is no longer seated by the actuating pressure, andaccumulator-pressure is admitted to cylinders 17, and as the plungers ofthese cylinders 17 are connected to the head 14 the downward movement ofthe head overcomes the counterbalance-pressure upon the plunger 12, dueto the elevated position of the tank 4,- and the water in the cylinder 11 between the plungers 12 and 13 is forced through the check-valve 19into the pipe 4 and thence into the tank 4, and, a portion of the waterdrives the ram 2 downwardly in the cylinder 2 by passing back throughthe pipe 3, the ram 2 being directly connected to the cylinder 11. Theparts are then in their initial position, ready to repeat the shearingoperation. 5

To enlarge the gap between the bladesfi, and 15, the valve 18 is movedso as-to admiti water to the cylinder .10 and to raise the heads 8 and 5and the posts 7, forming the frame of the shears. The function of thecylinder 10 is to serve as. an adjustable stop to limit and restrain theplunger 13 and to cause the motion imparted by the main cylin der to beexerted upon the other-plunger 12 in shearing. Instead of the cylinder10 I may use other stop'devices not hydraulically actuated. Myinvention. is applicable not only to hydraulic shears, but to other mechanism, such as presses, punching-machines, and the like.

The novel feature of my invention consists principally in theactuating-cylinder 11, open at both ends, with plungers acting inopposite directions, and the adjustable stop-cylinder, and its advantagearises from the ease of adjustment which it afiords to the heads of themachine and the simplicity and strength of the mechanism. .The otherparts of the apparatus may be varied or modified in con-j struction inmany ways, since What I claim is 1.v Mechanism havinganactuating-cylinder, open at both ends, oppositely-directed plungers, apressure-supply and a counterbalancing-pressure supply communicatingwith the intermediate space in the cylinder, and an adjustable stop forsaid plungers; substantially as described.

2. Mechanism having an actuating-cylin-j der-open at both ends andhaving oppositelydirected plungers therein, one of said plungersconstituting a movable bottom, a stop therefor, and a pressure-supplyarranged tocounterbalance the weight of the other plun-1 ger;substantially as described. 3. An. actuating-cylinder open at both endsand having oppositely-directed plun gers, and a pressure-supply andcounterbalancing-pressure supply communicating with the intermediatespace in said cylinder; substantially as described.

4.. Mechanism having movable heads, an upright actuating=cylinder openat both ends and having oppositely directed plungers, and anadjusting=cylinder connected directly to one of said heads to vary thegap between the heads; substantially as described.

5. Mechanism having adjustable heads, one of which forms part of themachine-frame, an adj llS'DlIlg-CYllIldGI', a frame connected to saidhead and moved by said cylinder, an actuating-cylinder open at both endshaving oppositely-directed plungers, one of said plungers actuating theother movable head and its companion plunger arranged to engage anabutment formed by the frame carried by the adjusting-cylinder;substantially as described.

6. Mechanism having two movable heads, an actuating-cylinder open atboth ends, oppositely-directed plungers in said cylinder, one of saidplungers actuating one of the movable heads, a fluid-actuating pressureconnection between the plun gers, a cylinder having a fluid-actuatedplunger whichsupports the other one of the first-named plungers, and-aconnection between said plunger and the other movable head;substantially asdescribed.

7. Mechanism having two movable heads, and an upright actuating-cylinderopen at both ends, and having oppositely-directed plungers, one of saidplungers engaging one of said heads to actuate the same, and the otherplunger engaging a frame containing the other movable head, and afluid-controlled support for said frame; substantially as described.

8. Mechanism having a cylinder open at both ends, twooppositely-directed plungers in the said cylinder, an actuatingfluid-pressure connection between the plungers, amovable head actuatedby one of the plungers, a second movable head connected to the otherplunger, and a cylinder having a plunger therein forming a support forthe last-named plunger; substantially as described.

9. Mechanism having movable heads, an adjusting-cylinder acting upon themachineframe, a portion of which constitutes one of the movable heads,an upright actuatingcyl inder open at both ends and havingoppositely-directed plungers, a movable head actuated by one of saidplungers, the position of the other plunger being determined by the 'gapbetween the movable heads; substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

HENRY AIKEN. Witnesses:

JOHN MILLER, H. M. CoRwIN.

